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Tuesday, November 29, 2011

No shortage of photos here.............

Okay - it only took me a month to complete. Wow - that's hard to believe, but with family visitors and a week long trip - add in kids and you can hopefully see why I don't get things done super fast. I have realized that I don't like to rush my quilts anyway because I am a perfectionist and I want them to look amazing for my customers.

This quilt was pieced by Thelma, you can see her process for this quilt here. Let me tell you that Thelma is an incredible piecer - seriously STRAIGHT piecing. It really makes a huge difference for me when I quilt. So, great job Thelma!

When I was deciding what to do on this quilt I remembered that Thelma had mentioned this quilt had a Civil War theme to it. So, I decided it would be best to get researching Civil War quilts and I ended up at this blog and found out that there are a ton of blocks out there that have meaning to them. So, I decided that I would take each square in the quilt and create a civil war block. I learned a few things and that the star block in this quilt is called the North Star. I never knew that.

The main design that I decided would work best in the center of the quilt is a block called Order Number Eleven. I drew the block in my EQ6 and created a template that would work for quilting this block. It ended up being my favorite block.

The stars were quilted to show the points. I didn't want to take away from the design of the star.

Here's a close up of Order Number Eleven. I absolutely love this quilting design!

Okay, as you can see - I have each of these nine blocks quilted differently. I had a total of 11 different quilt blocks for the quilt and I had to make a chart to make sure I got them in the right place.

You can also see that I created a border in each block. I wanted to focus on the theme of the Civil War blocks and if I had quilted to the edge of each square, then I wouldn't be able to accomplish the look I wanted. So, I came in each block at 1/4 inch and quilted the straight border before I quilted the rest of the block.

I think I kind of like it!

Now, are you wondering how long this took me? Well, each block took 10 minutes to quilt - that's 24 hours for just the blocks. The borders, thread change, and marking the quilt are a different story.

Let's just say that this quilt that is only 69" square took me over 40 hours of quilting.Sometimes I think I am slow, but really - I am a perfectionist and I can't go any faster than I do.

I think the blocks that have the two sided Order Number Eleven are my absolute favorite. When I quilted the first one - I fell in love with how it turned out.

Don't you just love how these two come together?

Borders - yes, I love the borders. It took a little planning and marking to get these little beauties finished. It's funny how I hated math in school - I told my mom I was never going to use it when I grew up and now I depend on math to quilt.

I used my straight edge ruler for the zigzag lines, but the straight stitching and feathered design are all free motion quilting. Don't judge me if they aren't perfect - I'm no computer.

I love the back - I always do.

I really get attached to these quilts, it's hard to send them back. The only consolation that I get in sending them back to their owners is that I get paid. Hehe!

Here are my blocks and templates. I had to use each block as a reference, then I drew the design on the quilt and quilted it. I used 4 colors for this quilt - that's a lot of thread changing, but well worth the outcome of this quilt.

Judi....you are amazing! Wow! This quilt is so gorgeous.....I love everything about it...and yeah, especially those two colored blocks! The quilting is perfectly suited to the design, too! And thanks for all the great pics.....I'm trying to find more ideas for fmq, and your blocks and borders are on my list now to try! I recently did a border with the same 1/2" straight lines, and the in-the-ditch between two contrasting fabrics was a bear! One stitch over the line and it totally ruined the effect.....but YOU have that technique mastered!

I'm always so worried to take away from the pieced design, but your designs work perfectly WITH the piecing. You rock!

Truly an awesome, inspiring job! I love it! In fact, I've been doing the Civil War block of the week since January and it is incredible to see your beautiful interpretation of this wonderful site by Barbara Brackman! Wow, incredible, awesome, beautiful and show stopping! Kudos to both you and Thelma!!

Judi, you just blow me away. Every time I see your work I'm reminded all over again what a genuine gift you have, not just for quilting, but the vision you have for designing your work as well. You are truly amazing. Thelma's quilt was beautiful before, but you have given it a life I don't think she ever dreamed of. Breathtaking is all I can think of....Big Hugs...

I was just sitting down for lunch and saw this post on my I pad...you are amazing!!!!!!!! So talented!!!!!!!!! What a treat for me to see in the middle of the day! Thanks for sharing your amazing work with us!!!!!! Hope you get paid what your worth girl!!!!!

Oye! What you create with a needle and thread absolutely takes my breath away! Is there a Hall of Fame for Quilters? There should be and you are hereby inducted! If you quilted one of my quilts, I would cry from sheer delight. Now I just have to piece something worthy of you. The recipient must have been over the moon. Sending much applause and a standing ovation.

WOW!!! That is some incredible quilting! Hhmm. . . I may need to start working on a quilt that would be worthy of your quilting.I follow Thelma's blog and seems like a really neat person apart from her wonderful piecing skills.

The thought, technique and research that went into this quilt are incredibly inspiring. It is exceptional! I am curious, what kind of batting did you use, or did you trapunto portions of it? Some areas seem to really pop. Quite possibly a dumb question, but I am not an advanced quilter.

Like everyone else, I have been sitting in front of my screen, just gazing at your work. Thank you for sharing - it's been difficult to even start to leave a comment, because I just can't come up with words to say what I want to. Sigh. Thanks again for posting all these beautiful pictures!

I don't think I've ever seen anything so gorgeous. I have serious Thelma envy going on right now! And I have the same pattern on my to-do pile, but I know that it will never work up as beautiful as this is. You are a true quilting artist!

I am in awe over your quilting. I'm a small time quilter - and seeing quilts like this is so inspiring! The work that goes into them amazes me. All your research and planning. Show's me the extra time spent is very much worth the effort. Beautiful quilt! Thanks for sharing. I would be fun to see how you plan these out.

Judi - the quilt is absolutely breathtaking and sure to become a heirloom. Thank you for sharing your process - it was fascinating to see the templates and get so much detail about how you work. Amazing!

you are a rock star! Thanks for sharing your work with all of us wanna-bees. I get a lot of inspiration & ideas from what you share with us. All those thread changes... you are not a computer, you are an artist. really taking machine quilting in a beautiful new direction.

Judi, i am speechless!! your quilting is so beautiful..i am overwhelmed!! you truly are a perfectionist and it shows. I would be so proud to be the lucky owner of that stunning little quilt..it is a priceless treasure!! i wish you lived nearby i would be thrilled to have you quilt my civil war blocks quilt..alas, i can only dream.

One word AMAZING!!!I can just about manage the straight stitch around each square and feel pretty good about it but your MACHINE quilting is AMAZING.Thanks for sharing. I would love to see a video of you quilting because it blows my mind that anyone can get this out of a machine. Carol

This is totally amazing - just beyond anything I would have thought to do. Remember when people were saying you should just stick to quilting not pattern making - this is why. (However, I think you should do whatever your little heart desires!) And I also think you deserve an award for best quilter!!!

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About Me

I am Judi the Green Fairy of Green Fairy Quilts. Strange name you may think, but it is a fun story of when I was young and my mom would comment before she left anywhere that it would be nice if the Green Fairy cleaned up while she was gone. I usually took the hint and cleaned up. So, when we started to think of a name for our business, naturally Green Fairy Quilts was it. I love to quilt and love to design, so together with my husband Clint we have turned my passion into a business. Clint now runs the business while I get to spend my time taking care of our four children and making time to longarm quilt and design quilt patterns. Thanks for stopping by!